Campaign '08

From Wire Reports

Published Sunday, October 21, 2007

Hillary Clinton

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton on Saturday rejected the front-runner label, but acknowledged increasing fire from rivals in both parties which she said she will largely ignore.

"I'm well aware that my opponents on both sides are paying a lot more attention to me," Clinton said. "I'm reminded by some of my friends that when you get to be my age, having so many men paying attention to you is kind of flattering."

Clinton, who's about to turn 60, met with reporters after a campaign event in Des Moines.

Most national polls have shown Clinton atop the field of Democratic contenders.

Republicans

ORLANDO -- In a night when the top Republican presidential candidates repeated the messages they've delivered elsewhere, Mitt Romney tried to capture the attention of Florida activists Saturday by surrounding himself with local supporters.

The other leading GOP candidates took the stage alone at the event organized by the state party, but Romney brought his wife, his oldest son, Florida's agriculture commissioner, two congressmen and a former state party chairman with him.

And he won enthusiastic applause by saying he wouldn't punish Florida for moving its presidential primary to Jan. 29 in violation of national party rules that call for the state to be stripped of half its delegates.

But the candidate who is leading Florida polls, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, clearly did the best job of firing up the crowd of 3,000.

Arizona Sen. John McCain scrapped his prepared remarks, which had a handful of veiled attacks at Romney.

Fred Thompson, a former Tennessee senator who has made campaigning in Florida a priority since entering the race last month, gave an unusually short speech.

He left the stage after five minutes less than a third of the time Giuliani and McCain spoke and less than half the time Romney was before the crowd.

Thompson spoke longer, for nearly 6 minutes, at a reception for black Republicans. Democratic contender Barack Obama has called it audacious for a black man such as himself to run for president, Thompson said.

Giuliani, Romney, McCain and Thompson had to pay $100,000 each to be able to speak to the crowd Saturday.

The Florida Democratic Party is holding a similar event next weekend, also in the Orlando area, but most presidential candidates won't be there because they've signed a pledge not to campaign in Florida because the early primary also violates their party's rules. The Democratic National Committee is stripping the state of all its delegates.

The only candidates to commit to that event are former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel and Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich.